I Promise
by Raccoon48
Summary: .Kaiora.SlightRiKairi.RikuxOC. The usual cliche! A year after Kingdom Hearts, Kairi still waits anxiously on the Destiny Islands for Sora's return. She worries that he's found someone else... x DISCONTINUED x
1. Unspoken Tears

**Summary;** The usual cliché. Based a year after Kingdom Hearts, Kairi waits anxiously on Destiny Islands for Sora's return. Innocent bits of fluff. SxK

**Pairings;** Mainly S/K, possibly some Selphie/Tidus hinting in later chapters…

**Disclaimer;** Sadly, I do not own Kingdom Hearts. (sniff) Oh, hang on, yes I do, it's downstairs in my PS2…Well you know what I mean. It belongs to Disney and Square Enix and all those other people.

**Author's Note;** Hello peoples! I actually wrote this fic waaaay back in like March, but now that I've finally registered, I can post it! Yay! I personally don't think it's very good. I haven't finished CoM yet so um pretend it didn't happen. XD This fic is a YAOI FREE ZONE! I'm not completely against shounen-ai, but I think that no one in kh was even remotely gay (sora and riku are just FRIENDS!), so no yaoi or yuri in this fic thankyou! Oh yeah, and everyone go read Simple and Clean by candy-mog, because it ROCKS ALL and it's much better than this! XD So yea…this is my first fic so no flames please cos I lost my fire extinguisher...long story. Enjoy! (hopefully)

" Text " -Speaking

_Text -_Thinking

_" Text " -_Flashback

**Chapter 1; "Unspoken Tears"**  


Kairi stood on the beach, staring out at the small island in the distance. Waiting. Just like every other day when she would come here, to sit in the sand, and watch the ocean and the skies, until the sun disappeared beneath the horizon. Every day, ever since she had returned to the Destiny Islands, ever since the day he had disappeared. That day, more than a year ago now, when she'd watched hopelessly as she and Sora drifted further and further apart. After being transported back to the island, she'd wandered around and eventually found herself in the secret place. She'd found the drawing on the wall, the one that Sora had added to; himself giving her the legendary star-shaped fruit.

How she wished he was here. How she wished that he would laze around on the beach and protest when she called him a lazy bum. Her nickname for him.

"_Sora, you lazy bum…I knew that I'd find you snoozing down here…"_

Just thinking of him made a small tear run down her cheek.

"What'cha doin'?"

Kairi almost jumped ten feet in the air. Selphie smiled at up at her with that innocent smile of hers.

"Oh, Selphie…it's just you…you scared me…" Kairi said vaguely, trying without success to hide her tears. She never liked Selphie interfering with her private thoughts.

"Kai, what were you crying for?" asked Selphie, concerned, her happy smile vanishing.

Selphie, Tidus and Wakka had all felt sorry for her when she returned to the island, all trying to help her take her mind off it in their own special way; Wakka offering to teach her blitzball, Tidus challenging her to a round. But she always refused, simply because all of their sympathy only made her feel sadder about everything. They just weren't the same as him. He always knew how to cheer her up.

"I wasn't crying…" Kairi responded to Selphie's question.

"…It's about him again…isn't it?" Selphie said sadly.

"Huh?" Kairi asked in fake curiosity, pretending to be distracted by the beautiful sunset.

"You know who I mean…Sora."

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

Kairi sat in the Secret Place hugging her knees, tears flowing silently down her cheeks as she gazed at the picture they had drawn together, so long ago.

"_I'll come back to you! I promise!"_

Those words echoed in her head constantly, along with the memory of him in her mind. The image of him slowly moving away, and her last glimpse of him as he tried to call to her through the spreading blue light. Sometimes she wondered if she was going insane with waiting…

_Sora…_

Suddenly she was jerked out of her memories by quiet footsteps creeping down the passage. She wiped her eyes and stood up, brushing down her skirt. The footsteps grew louder and suddenly Selphie bounded out into view. She was wearing her usual yellow colour, a short-sleeved girly dress that went down to her knees. She wore brown sandals that were no doubt uncomfortably filled with sand. As she spotted Kairi, a smile spread across her face.

"I was wondering where you'd gotten to, you really worried me for a-" Her smile faded as she saw Kairi's red eyes.

"Oh no, you haven't been crying _again_ have you?" she asked worriedly.

Kairi didn't answer.

"Come on! He'll come back soon! He promised!" Selphie said cheerfully with that special smile that proved she was a romanticist. Kairi had been lucky in that Selphie hadn't yet discovered the drawing in the rock, as she rarely ever came in here.

Kairi just sighed sadly. Would such a lazy bum really travel that far just to keep a simple promise?

Selphie tried to cheer her friend up. "You two were so close! He'll come back, I know he will! He'd never forget abou-"

She was interrupted by a large crash that came from the shore outside.

o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

A/N: Well whad'ya think? It was ok…I think. XD Ummm, to anyone who's seen the trailer for KH2 that was shown at Jump Festa, I think the start of this chapter works really well with that scene of Kairi and Selphie, yea? Which is strange because I wrote this BEFORE I saw the trailer…O.O I know this chappie's really really short and I'm sorry! BTW, this story will most likely not have much of a plot, only fluff, innocent little fluff! I like fluff. And if anyone's thinking that the title is really cliched, it actually has a good relevance to the story, but only in like the last chapter…XD I've written the next chapter but I'm not going to post it unless I get at least a few reviews (what's the point of posting a story if no one's going to read it?) so REVIEW people REVIEW! I'll give you a WHOLE cheesecake if ya do. Seriously. But remember no flames!


	2. Crash Landing

Author's Note; OMG! I got reviews! XD Thankyou sooooooo much to all those who reviewed, you made me so happy! I had to go out and buy more cheesecake! 

**misshotness; **Hey Abbey… Thanx 4 reading the story, when r u gonna have chappie 7 up? O yea and did you really have to use my review space to advertise your fic? XD (sigh) yea, you get cheesecake too.

**carbuncle x3; **you think it's awesome! Cool… I guess I was nervous about posting it cos the first chappie was kinda sucky. o (hands cheesecake)

**Zarya; **(grins) you poked me!XD yea, well I thought it was really cliched, cos soooooo many people have written about Kairi being on destiny islands, waiting for Sora. Thanks for putting my story on your favourites and for reviewing! (gives cheesecake)

**Lacy (); **awww, thanks, I updated as soon as I could! Hope you like this chapter! Enjoy your cheesecake.

**Princess Kairi; **Haha, yea cliches rock! Yes, this is my first fic, thanks so much! I'm not too great at writing non-innocent fluff so yea … XD here's your cheesecake! Oh no, I'm running out…

**thes razr blade kisses; **lolz thanx, I updated as soon as I could, but I had to edit and stuff so yea… thanks for putting me on your favourites! Have a cheesecake!

**cherrydreamer; **thanx, umm, you mean The Phantom and Kurt Zisa? I actually never beat any of the optional bosses (because I'm lazy) so sorry can't help ya with that one. Find a walkthrough online somewhere, they're really helpful. Your cheesecake is HERE! (hands cheesecake) Thanks for putting me on your favourites!

Ok, going on with the chapter, I edited this chappie over and over again, but I still don't like it! XD Anyways, if you've got any suggestions for what I could do to make it better, feel free to say so, I'm open for constructive criticism! Just don't flame without a reason k? Thanks you guys!

**Disclaimer: **If I owned Kingdom Hearts, would I really be writing fanfiction about it?

**Chapter 2; "Crash Landing"**

(Whoo flashback)

"_He'd never forget abou-"_

_Selphie was interrupted by a loud crash that came from the shore outside._

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

'_What was that…?_

Kairi and Selphie glanced at each other questioningly. Then, as if reading each other's minds, ran together out through the dark tunnel and out onto the beach, blinded for a moment by the setting sun's reflection off the water's surface.

They stopped.

A large, oddly shaped object lay on the sand, partly dug into the ground. A … vehicle of some sort? It looked as though it was made of Lego blocks…

_'A Gummi ship…'_ thought Kairi, her heart beating wildly, _'Could it really be…?' _

Kairi vaguely felt Selphie grab her arm in fear, having never seen the likes of a spaceship before.

"What is it, Kai?"

Kairi hardly heard her; she was listening so intently, trying to make out a sound…

Loud, angry voices reached their ears, coming from the brightly coloured ship. A door opened in the side, and a tall, silver-haired teenager stepped out, looking royally pissed off, dressed in a sleeveless blue shirt and long black pants, with a dark, black coat hanging loosely off his shoulders.

"You are _never _driving again, duck. _Never._" He spoke back into the cabin.

'_Riku…?'_

A small white duck followed, dressed in blue, an angry look on his face. "It wasn't my fault, you big palooka! If you hadn't grabbed the wheel…!"

_'Donald…'_

A dog-like thing followed, looking much the same as he always had, with a happy, carefree grin on his face, oblivious to the fighting around him.

'_Goofy…'_

Donald argued with Riku for a few minutes more, while Goofy watched them enthusiastically, a bit of peace among the fighting. No one noticed the two girls watching from less than ten metres up the beach. Finally, the last member of the crew stepped out.

Kairi's eyes widened.

It was a spiky-haired brunette, about as tall as Goofy now. He wore a mostly black outfit, with a black jacket, black fingerless gloves and black knee-length shorts. There were also hints of red and blue, and the same enormous yellow shoes. (hee hee) Flat yellow belts criss-crossed over the whole thing for no apparent reason.

Kairi stood, frozen with shock, staring at the adorable young man in front of her, completely unaware of Selphie trying to pull her towards him.

'…_Sora…!'_

Sora glanced at the two still arguing beside him, raised his eyebrows and grinned. He looked around at the palm trees, wooden planks and ladders that were crookedly built in various areas. He breathed in the salty aroma of the sea, something he hadn't been able to do for _way_ too long. After a reminiscent moment he scanned the beach, searching for signs of life. He spotted the two girls further up the shore; a short, spunky brunette, pulling on the arm of a red-haired girl. The little brunette, well, he definitely knew who _that_ was. His eyes moved to the redhead. He smiled.

'_Kairi…'_

"Sora!" Goofy walked over cheerfully. "So this is really where you lived? Gawrsh…"

Sora tore his eyes away from Kairi. He nodded to Goofy, then started walking up the slope.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Selphie pulled Kairi harder.

"C'mon! It's Sora! He's finally here! He came back, just like he promised! Oh my god, look he's seen you! He's coming! Come _on _Kairi!"

At that last word, Kairi forcefully jerked herself out of her reverie, and saw Sora walking towards her…he was here…he _had_ kept his promise… Kairi's eyes filled with tears of happiness, and she felt herself break down completely. Her heart ached to see him right in front of her, and suddenly she'd pulled herself free from Selphie to run down the slope. She threw her arms around him, almost toppling him to the ground. Sora staggered under her weight, but managed to stay upright. Kairi buried her face in his chest, sobbing.

Her grip on him tightened, as though she knew she finally had him back, and never wanted to let go. Sora blinked in surprise, then slowly wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly.

"Kairi…"

Riku and Donald looked around at the sound of the sobbing, and forgot all about their little argument. Selphie, Donald and Goofy smiled like the cheerful matchmakers they were, and watched the cute couple.

Riku however, frowned at Sora, his heart brimming with jealously.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

**A/N:** What a cliche. (sigh) Oh well. As Princess Kairi said, clicheness rocks. XD I think Riku really did love Kairi in the game, with the whole 'giving himself up to darkness to find her' thing. XD Also, I'm sorry if Riku is kinda OOC, but he DID change from being in Kingdom Hearts anyway and this is how I'm making him so deal with it. It's better than him being gay. Why does everyone make him gay!

Ok, what will my bribe be this time? Hmmm…(thinks) Aha! How 'bout if you review, I'll give you a plushie of your choice? Ok, when u review, tell me who u want a plushie of, and I'll see wat I can do. Lmao. Please review guys! You have no idea how happy it makes me! I probably won't be updating for at _least _another week sorry guys but I'm real busy with school at the moment. Cya later, and thanx again for all the wonderful reviews! Keep 'em coming! lol


	3. An Unexpected Confession

**Author's Note; **Hey guys I'm back! I would have updated sooner but I was busy doing…ummm…nothing. XD I love holidays. I'm going away for about a week from tomorrow, so the next chappie won't be up for a few weeks, cos while I'm away I probably won't even get access to a computer, sorry! I actually struggled to get this one up before I left, but I did, so I'll come home to lots of pretty little reviews in my inbox! (glares at readers) (mutters) Or else!

Heh…Thanks 4 all the reviews! I luv you guys! Replies r at the end of the chappie!

So, on with the fic; If you were hoping to see loads of fluff in this chapter, I'm afraid it's mostly RxK, sadly. I apologise in advance for that.:( Yea, it sucks, I know, but fear not, the next chappie, (if I ever get it up) is very SxK-ish! So please don't be disappointed with this chappie, it's all part of the non-existent plot! XD Oh yea and I'm making it that Riku's parents died like a loooooooooong time ago, I know that in the game it's kinda obvious that he _does _have parents but what the hell! It makes it easier to write! Deal with it! On with the fic!

**Disclaimer; **In a dark, dark world, there was a dark, dark forest. In the dark, dark forest, there was a dark, dark house. In the dark, dark house there was a dark, dark room. In the dark, dark room there was a dark, dark chair. In the dark, dark chair there sat a dark, dark girl. And that girl did not own Kingdom Hearts.

**Chapter 3; "An Unexpected Confession"**

From the POV of Kairi's secret stalker:

Kairi opened her eyes. She lay on her bed as the morning light streamed through the thin fabric of her lavender curtains. She smiled as the memories of yesterday flitted through her mind.

"_Sora…"_

The moment when she threw her arms around him she had sub-consciously realised just how tall he had grown. She knew of course, she had grown as well, but he still towered over her skinny figure. His voice was much deeper too, his hair had become (if possible) even wilder, and he still had those piercing blue orbs, that always made her feel as if she could get lost in them forever. She was amazed at how much a person could mature over one year, though it had felt like 5 to Kairi.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

"_Sora, what…happened…?"_

"_Well…" He sighed, "…the world barriers…the walls…they're down again. We don't know why. The Heartless are back too. We…decided to…come back here…for you…"_

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

'_He's changed so much…'_

Kairi shook her head, got out of bed (hey that rhymes) and ritually put on some clothes; a sleeveless collared white shirt, and a blue checked mini skirt. She slipped on her dark blue, knee-high socks and black shoes and brushed her now past shoulder-length, dark red hair.

'_What time is it?' _Kairi thought suddenly, wondering how late she had slept in. (sometimes Kairi sleeps in really late. XP) She glanced at the clock.

_9:16_

'_Good, not too late… wonder if he's up…'_

Kairi laughed out loud, remembering his mother's reaction to him suddenly showing up in the doorway.

"_Oh my GOD! SORA! My BABY! Where WERE you!"_

Sora had been engulfed in her enormous motherly hug. Kairi remembered his awkward, embarrassed face, blushing, and giggled.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Kairi walked slowly along the street. She breathed in the cool morning air, happy to have something to smile about. There was no reason to cry anymore, she thought cheerily. (how very wrong she was…)Just as she passed Riku's old house, she heard someone calling her.

"Kairi? Kairi!"

She turned. Riku stood in the doorway, a big grin on his face.

"Mornin'."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. She was surprised at how easily they could talk together, considering the whole darkness episode. He'd been on the verge of turning completely dark and evil, and now he could comfortably give her a friendly morning greeting?

"Hey, you wanna come in for a minute, it's actually in pretty good shape, considering it's been left untouched for a year…"

'_That's right…Riku has no parents…'_

Kairi felt as though they were pretty much back to the way things were. Lots of memories were returning to her, memories that only yesterday had been too painful to reflect on, memories that she had locked away inside her heart and mind in order to prevent herself from suffering her empty loneliness. These memories seemed happy now, and so she smiled at Riku, and nodded.

"Sure."

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

"So…welcome back." Kairi said earnestly, sitting down on the chair Riku offered her.

"Yeah… we're finally back…" Riku replied absentmindedly. He was becoming distracted by what his mind was telling him;

'_You should tell her now…she's right here...'_

Kairi studied the tidy room with her eyes. Riku had lived in this house alone since he was ten, when his father had died from amysteriousdisease (his mother died in childbirth). She had to admit, the room was in pretty good shape for a guy who lived by himself; or the kitchen at least. His bedroom was another story altogether.

"So...where'd you go? For that whole year...what'd you do?" Kairi asked.

"Uhhhh...well...after the walls broke down and we uh, me and Mickey, found Sora...we...(battled Heartless of course) then pretty much came straight here. Sora insisted." Riku grinned at those words, but stopped quickly, as it reminded him of the problem he was facing.

Kairi blinked, then blushed slightly and looked to the floor.

Riku meanwhile, twisted his hands together as he finally came to a decision. He swallowed.

"Kairi…well, you know how we've practically been friends forever right?"

Kairi looked up.

'_Hmmm…unless you count you going all evil and stuff, yeah, I guess.' _She thought grudgingly, but said nothing, only nodded curiously.

"W-well, I just wanted to tell you, although…I don't think it's really important anymore, and well…I know… you and me…we're not really…but…well, what I mean is…"

Kairi blinked again.

"I…I love you Kairi."

Kairi stood up in shock. She had always wondered what Riku thought of her, and after last year, it was pretty obvious he had some hidden feelings for her, but to hear him say it, _now,_ so suddenly_…_She felt as though he had literally kicked her in the face.

Riku hesitantly took a few steps forward and put his arms around her.

"Kai… I know you don't love me back, and I don't mind, it's okay, I'm over it," He repeated, "We're friends, yeah?" He whispered.

Kairi nodded and smiled softly. What a weirdo. The teen king of cool, confessing to her? She almost giggled, but stopped as she sensed movement near the door. Shifting her head, she glimpsed, from the corner of her eye, Sora. She gasped. How much had he seen? Framed in the doorway, on his face a mixture of hate, sadness, anger, and was it…envy…? He watched Riku hug her, fists clenched at his side.

'_No…'_

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

**A/N:** Dun Dun DAAAAAAAAA! Oh, that chapter is so sucky! I hate it! T-T Oh well. Please no one kill me for the RxK fluff! Or for Riku's OOC-ness! Like the last chapter, it took me ages but I still hate it! I was going to say that Riku's parents died in a car crash, but then I was like 'No wait! That's too cliched!' so I changed it.:) The next chappie is gonna be the best! I've had it planned out ever since I started the fic. btw, The 'No' at the end was Kairi, not Sora. Or Riku. Heh.

Please remember to review peoples! It makes me dance! (seriously) No flames! Suggestions and stuff are welcomed! This time you get umm… some type of food… oh well, I'll go with the cookies. XD

A BIG thanks to all my reviewers!

**carbuncle x3; **lol thanks, you can have…hmmm…a MOOGLE plushie! Ha ha ha!

**Zarya; **Thankyou so much! I try my best to get the characters IC! Thanks for noticing! lol. I haven't written all of it out yet, but I've got the basic plotline for the next few chappies drafted on my comp so hey. I don't know if I'm gonna have a SelphiexRiku pairing… I'm not sure yet. XD (you don't want to see under my bed)

**Princess Kairi;**lolz here's your plushie! (reluctantly hands plushie) I love Sora too, he's so cute! (cough spiky hair cough) lmao, anyways, thanks for reviewing!

**thes razr blade kisses; **(laughs) thanks, I love cheesecake too! I actually went and ate a lot of it after that last chappie…

**Casey; **Thanks! I don't particularly like the RixKai pairing either, and I know! Why do people make him GAY? (sigh) I think it's the long hair. (shakes head) Oh yes and here's your Sesshomaru plushie! I must admit I haven't seen Inuyasha…yet!

**blackdragon; **Thanks so much! Hope you liked this chappie!

**MagicV; **lol thanks. (wow that was a short reply)

**Andrew; **Umm…no, I don't believe Rikku is in my fic…unless I accidentally added an extra 'k' somewhere…Rikku's cool, yeah, but she don't belong in a kingdom hearts fic!

**Annjirika;** Ok, you definitely get a Riku plushie! Lolz thanks for the review! I'm more of a Sora fan myself, but hey. XD By the way, your stories are really great and I luv them!

**cherrydreamer; **Yea, I hate beating bosses…the last fight with Ansem is hell…every time you think you've beaten him you have to go back and beat him again! Have u beaten the game b4? Anyways good luck with that and here is your Kairi plushie! (hands over plushie) Yea, she is kinda cool.


	4. Remorseful Memories

**Author's Notes:** Hi everybody! Sorry this chapter took a while, I went away for a week (which was boring and internet-deprived) and when I finally came back my dad decided he'd screw around with my computer, making it 'better' (which it kinda is) but it took a while so yeah! Anyways, I want to say a big thanks to AngelKairi for reviewing! XD And everyone else of course, just AK's very special lol. -Anyone who likes SxK pairings (which you should if you're reading this) go read 'Wounds too Deep to Heal' by AngelKairi, because it's really REALLY good and it desperately NEEDS reviews! And read her other stories too! You can have a big extra-special block of chocolate from me if you r&r her stories! (Yes, I am giving out chocolate this time to those who review, only becos I'm too lazy too think up something more inventive, and I'm eating some right now and it's GOOOOOOOD…)

I finished the main game of KH:CoM! Yay! I haven't quite done Reverse/Rebirth yet, but I think it's not too hard at the moment to insert that plotline into the story here, so, it will from now on, be set after Chain of Memories, and I think I know what happened at the end of Riku's story so that will…eh…have happened as well. :) It'll only be vaguely connected; as everyone reading this knows, this story is not about plotline, it is about romance, and that's all there is to it! lol

Onto another stupid topic about me: I finished the 6th Harry Potter book a few days ago, and I still can't BELIEVE they killed who they killed! Bah! I won't spoil it for those of you who haven't finished yet, but I'll say it was a very important character who was not supposed to die until the last book! Or at least I think so. Pssshh. This paragraph was pointless. Pssshh.

Yep, so with that done, on with the story; reviewer replies r after the chappie. As a side note; during this chapter and the last one and such, Donald and Goofy are still on the island, staying at Sora's house. Also, I'm sorry about that last chapter, it was kinda rushed and dodgy, but I hope this one will be better, it was originally gonna be really short, but I came up with this bit about Sora reminiscing …which got extraordinarily extended…so it got really really long; it's more than twice the size of the last chapter! XD it's just a filler chapter until chapter 5 anyways, which is going to be extreme fluffiness! happy face Thank God, cos it nearly killed me to put in all that RxK-ness last chapter. (sweatdrop) Ahhhmmm… and there's a bit in this chapter that I got really miserable writing out, not because of RxK-ness but…well, you'll see. (sniffs) And if you thought the last chapter was a cliffie, just wait til the end of this chapter…heh heh laughs evilly But I'll say no more here…

Sorry, that was a long author's note. Here, have some chips.

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but my supposed moose (which my sister keeps insisting that I have).

**Chapter 4; "Remorseful Memories"**

Sora's POV, mostly.

Sora knocked on Riku's front door.

No answer.

Sora frowned. He could see lights on through the front window and could not imagine where Riku had gone at this time of the morning. He had only gotten back yesterday…

The door was not locked, so he pushed it open slightly and listened. He heard the distant scraping of chairs against the floor, and incoherent voices coming from a room down the hall; and recognized the loud, cheerful voice as Kairi's. Intrigued and curious, he crept down the hallway, careful not to step too loudly. He peeked his head around the corner into the kitchen, just in time to see Riku pull Kairi into a loving embrace.

'_Huh…?'_

Sora stood in the doorway, shocked. He vaguely heard Riku whisper something, but only Kairi heard the words, and nodded and smiled in response.

Riku and …Kairi…? Together? But… he was the one who had…fought and…

_No._

A calm voice inside his head interrupted his stuttering train of thought.

_Riku went through all that too. He had to face the darkness in his heart, and fight it. He fought through a lot, maybe more than you did… more than you ever gave him credit for…Perhaps he deserves her more than you…_

Sora's fists clenched at his sides, but he knew the voice was right. He had had Donald and Goofy to journey with, whilst Riku had had no one except the occasional appearance of King Mickey. Furthermore, Sora had never been possessed, never had to deal with a darkness controlling him…never had to fight that darkness…

Lost in his jealous thoughts of remorse, Sora didn't catch the split-second when Kairi's eyes flickered to him, and her jaw dropped in horror.

Sora turned away in disgust, and quickly and silently crept back down the hall and out the door, hurt and jealousy building inside his so-called 'heart of light'.

'_What do I do? They won't care about me anymore…where do I go?'_

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Kairi saw Sora vanish from the doorway as quickly as he'd appeared, and she pulled away from Riku, realizing the mess she was in. If Sora hadn't heard the actual conversation, (and from the look on his face, she guessed he hadn't) then the situation would have looked very fishy indeed. He was sure to think they had hooked up or something. Kairi pushed her hair out of her face in frustration, and started towards the door.

"Kairi, where're you…wha…?"

Kairi stopped, and turned back to face Riku. She could tell from his confuzzled face that he had no idea that Sora had just witnessed their little reunion scene of doom. (doom… heh)

She gave him a small smile of annoyance. "I'm sorry Riku, but I gotta catch him and sort it out before he does something stupid, you know what he's like," she said, then grinned. "Then again, maybe he's too _lazy_ to care."

She highly doubted this, but enjoyed seeing the confused look sent her way that clearly indicated Riku had no idea what she was on about. She then quickly ran off and out the door onto the street without another word.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Finding Sora turned out to be easier said than done. He seemed to have vanished from the island as quickly as he had vanished from the kitchen doorway…wait, the island! Kairi mentally kicked herself for being so stupid. Of course, he must have gone over to the other island, the one where they used to play, and where he had landed last night. She had been going there herself every day for the past year, how could she have forgotten? He too had often escaped there, when they were little; any day there was work to be done, Sora would mysteriously disappear and be found, hours later, asleep on the beach of the kids' island.

Still cursing herself, Kairi ran to the docks and hopped in her small boat, untied it and began rowing as fast as she could towards the distant patch of land. For, as Kairi thought weakly, her stomach turning over, the Gummi ship still lay on that stretch of sand.

Did Sora know how to fly it? He certainly hadn't during her brief time with them on the ship, after the fiasco of Hollow Bastion, although he complained a lot about how much better and faster he could have flown it. Had he learnt to pilot it during the last year? She couldn't know, and couldn't risk it. She felt sure he wouldn't leave without Donald and Goofy, but then… Sora did strange things when he was hurt.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Sora sat on the hard ground of the secret place, much like Kairi had only the day before.

'_Kairi…she never… after everything… It was Riku…It's always Riku….' _He thought angrily to himself, _'she loves Riku…'_

He slammed his fist down on the dirt floor. He couldn't believe he had come back to her for this. After the whole darkness disaster that had made him realise just how deeply he cared for her, how much he wanted to protect her, to keep her safe, and now…

Lost in thought, he absentmindedly pulled a small keychain out of his pocket. It was a lucky charm, incredibly special to him, that he had looked at every day in the past year. Sora looked down at it and smiled sadly. It had been such a cliched scene. (lol)

'_Had she been acting out that sincerity? Only been…' _he swallowed,_ 'toying with him?'_

But no matter how much resentment and rejection he felt towards Kairi now, he still could not imagine her doing something like that. She wasn't that kind of person…or was she? Sora sighed. He didn't know what to think anymore.

Yet, he had no trouble understanding why she had picked Riku instead of him; Riku was tall, handsome, well-built, _and_ mature for his age - everything Sora was not. Sora had never really cared much before, they were_ all_ different, but they were together, so what did it matter? Yet he felt it mattered a great deal now. Kairi had chosen Riku, after all that, all the time she and him had spent together, watching the sunset before they rowed back home, her half-joking accusations when she found him asleep on the beach, avoiding work… even as little kids, hadn't they spent that day drawing each other on the rock in here?

'_Come to think of it…'_

What had she thought, when she saw his little addition? Had she even seen it? What had she done?

Sora glanced over at the wall on his left, and felt his stomach jolt.

Last time he had seen it, more than a year ago, it had had both their faces scratched on the wall, as it had been for years, but he had added something that day.

"_If two people share one, their destinies become intertwined…they'll remain a part of each other's lives… no matter what…"_

That had been what he'd drawn. An arm, -his arm- reaching from him to Kairi, giving her that fruit, the paopu fruit of legend. As far as he knew, it was a myth, made up by someone like Selphie, but it was the meaning that counted. The drawing showed clearly his feelings for her, for wanting to; '_remain a part of her life, no matter what' _had to count for something.

_She didn't feel the same…_

But the reason his stomach had jolted was not because it had been scribbled out, or simply ignored, as he had expected, it was because there was another arm, reaching out from Kairi, holding an identical star-shaped paopu fruit to him.

He gaped at the drawing for a moment, hope rising in him that she just might feel the same way… but then… what was she doing hanging out with Riku like that? The smile on her face as Riku had held her in his arms… it could only be because she was happy about him holding her… Kairi knew very well the legend of the Paopu fruit; that it was only for the one person you really cared for… and she wasn't one to fool around with legends like this one.

But then…he thought as he looked back at the drawing etched into the stone. His sketch of her hadn't exactly been very good; it could have looked like he was trying to draw Selphie… But _she_ wouldn't have drawn that arm, would she? She hardly ever came in here - she always said it wasn't stable, and that the enormous rocks could come crashing down at any moment. And he couldn't remember Selphie ever being praised for her drawing ability… that was Kairi… and Selphie had acted normal when he'd seen her last, hadn't she? Slightly over-excited, maybe, but…

And even if Kairi _had _drawn it, what if she'd changed her mind when he had come back? Maybe she had decided that Riku's change of personality, maturity level, was much more fanciful than his own childish attitude that he had always shown to her?

He felt like he was screwing up his brain trying to work it out, so he looked down at the keychain again.

"_It's my lucky charm!"_

The stupid charm. It had never brought _him_ any good luck, anyways. Heartless were still popping up wherever he went…Was it really useful at all? Did it even _mean_ anything anymore? Maybe he should throw it away…

Sora made a movement to throw it across the cave room, but his fingers wouldn't let go. It was as though a part of him had stuck them together with superglue. A part of him that didn't want to hurt Kairi.

Sora sighed.

He had tried his best to keep the fragile object intact over the dragging year; he knew it meant a lot to Kairi, and it had been the symbol of their friendship… but why, why had he cared so much to take it out almost every night in the last year, while he was alone, and rub it clean? Why had he spent every night thinking about her, dreaming about her? Why had he constantly insisted that they find the Destiny Islands, before doing anything else? Why, even when they met King Mickey and Riku in Twilight Town, had Sora only said a brief greeting to them, and then insisted they press on? And, above all, _why_ did he feel so jealous of Riku?

'_Because you love her…' _he told himself angrily.

He started. Running footsteps were echoing down the passageway. A moment later, Kairi appeared in the doorway, puffing slightly from rowing and sprinting up the beach. She stopped and sighed with relief, seeing him on the ground, back against a rock. He saw by her expression, that she knew he knew her secret.

"Sora…I'm sorry…" she panted, gasping for breath.

He glared at her and stood up, walking towards the entrance. "So… you and Riku, huh?" He said in false cheeriness, making it sound like everyday gossip. But Kairi saw his fists clench tightly.

"Sora! It's not like that, he was just-"

"By the way," He said, cutting her off and holding out his hand, "You can have this back."

Her lucky charm. It looked good as new, sitting in his glove-clad palm. But… hadn't he been to hundreds of worlds across the galaxy? _Surely_ it would have gotten dirty and battered, being through all that…?

He really had taken care of it.

Kairi slowly took the keychain, remembering the day she had given it to him. Right after they had returned from Hollow Bastion, right after she had regained her heart…when they had shared that short embrace…

"_I looked everywhere for you, but you were with me all along."_

"_It's my lucky charm, be sure to bring it back to me!"_

Kairi smiled reminiscently as she remembered back in that secret cave. The idea had just popped into her head, that day in the secret waterway - but what a strange way to get him to promise to come back! She'd known at the time he would never break that promise.

**(WARNING: Very sad scene coming up, I myself almost cried while writing it, so be prepared)**

She looked up at him, still smiling. Sora stiffened and glared at her, making her smile vanish instantly and she stared at him in surprise. She had never failed to make him smile back at her before.

It was then that Sora smiled, but a sharp, cruel mockery of the smile that had always made her laugh. His eyes were still giving her the death glare, full of hate and malice. It was sarcastic… _seductive _even… and it made the smile look rather like he was baring his teeth at her, like a werewolf about to sink its teeth into its prey. It was –she could only describe it as– evil.

Kairi stared, horrified, at this hateful face for several long moments. She felt weak against it; it had caught her completely by sick surprise. Gone were all the signs of his trademark smile that she loved; the smiling, mischievous blue eyes, the innocent grin… all of it… transformed into this cruel imitation… and Kairi felt her heart shatter.

Sora smirked, and started back towards the tunnel.

Kairi stood there for a moment, unaware he had left, still staring wide-eyed with shock at the spot his head had been, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Sora trod on a stick halfway to the entrance, making a loud snapping noise which woke Kairi from her reverie. She blinked, suddenly realized Sora gone, whipped around and stumbled after him, grabbing his wrist tightly.

Sora tried to pull away, but she would not let go.

"Sora…" she whispered, finding her throat had tightened and hardly able to form those two painful syllables.

He brought himself to look around at her. He saw her red eyes, pleading, shining with tears and more still running down her pale cheeks. Her lips were slightly parted, giving way to the quiet, shuddering sobs escaping them; her shaking fingers were clutched tightly over his wrist; and Sora felt a cold wave of guilt wash over him.

He had hurt her much, much more than he had meant to, not thinking for a moment that she would react at all in this way. Sora had never quite realized how much his cheesy grin meant to Kairi. He thought merely that she found it amusing, and had therefore kept it for so long that he did not remember its origin, just that he smiled for her. He already was deeply regretting that smirk of hate, deeply regretting hurting her so badly, and Kairi thought she saw a glimmer of remorse flash through his eyes.

They continued staring at each other for a moment; cobalt and indigo orbs locked together, neither knowing what to say. Tears were still leaking from Kairi's eyes, her bottom lip was trembling, and her uneven sobs were not showing any sign of letting up. It was as though he really had ripped out her heart.

Sora swallowed, yanked his arm from her grasp and trudged away on the sand, shivering slightly. Although shaken, he had not forgotten what he'd seen at Riku's place.

"Sora, pl-please!" Kairi choked through her tears. He ignored her completely.

She let out a small squeak of exasperated hopelessness, and sank slowly to the floor, watching Sora's feet retreating ever so slowly up the passageway. She stared after him desperately, and suddenly the words Kairi had been longing to say ever since Sora had returned, burst from her mouth before she could stop them.

"Sora! I don't love Riku! I love _you_!"

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

**A/N:** HAHAHHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHA! I shall kill you with suspense! Yay! Was that a cliffhanger or was that a cliffhanger? The next chappie is gonna rock! Omg that smirking scene was so sad! I felt miserable for the rest of the day! T-T (sniffs) I'm not sure whether it's really as bad as it seemed at the time though… hmm. Haha, I used the word remorse three times in one chapter. o And if you think the whole 'Sora thinking' scene was too long and boring, feel free to say so in ur review, I wasn't sure. Like I said, review and I'll give you chocolate! (unless you flame) Read AngelKairi's stories and I'll give you extra chocolate! (again, unless you flame; don't you dare flame her stories, or I'll come after you with a knife!) I have NO idea when the next chappie will be up, school just went back and i won't be visible under the mountains of work... so i'll try my best :) Cya next time! PLEASE REVIEW! Thanks everyone!

**misshotness: **I would never make it an RxK! You know I hate that pairing. Sorry, I'm trying to put them up quicker, but every time I read over them, I see heaps of stuff I'm not happy with so I spend another 4 days editing it! lol. Wish I was like you, putting up a chappie every three days…even one a week would be good 4 me…:( (glares jealously) oh well, here's ya cookie, ur story is coming along really well by the way! (hands cookie)

**Zarya: **yeah, Riku is a weirdo! Yes, I couldn't access computers where I was, it's a hard life. jk. Riku wasn't too OOC? (sighs in relief) THANKYOU! I think Sora shows his jealously quite a lot in the game (at least when you've played it as many times as I have) and it's really cute sometimes. :)  
Yes, a chocolate chip cookie! (happy face) (gives cookie)  
(looks over review) it wasn't that pointless…really… PS You will NEVER get to see under my bed. NEVER!

**thesrazrbladekisses: **lol thanks, (hands cookie) the dreaded cliffies! you're gonna kill me with this one aren't you? Uh oh…

**cHErrY-dREaMeR:** haha, good job, it's an insane fight… (shakes head) I know, the ending's so sad! When he lets go of her hand… (cries) I can't wait for KH2! Don't worry, I'm addicted too! (shifty look) yum, cookies… (hides stash of cookies) oh fine. (hands cookie dejectedly)

**AngelKairi: **Haha, not much to say, again thanks SO much for reviewing, I almost exploded when I saw a review from you! lol. Hoped you liked the update! Yea, you can have a big cookie, and the plushie and cheesecake as well just cos you're AWESOME! (hands lots of stuff) Yeah, jealously and clichés rock! I went to Queensland (beaches…yay.) but it was pretty boring. Hope yours was better! Glad u liked my vid! Thanks so much!

**carbuncle x3: **ha, you love food don't you? XD Me too! Mmm…food…Here you go! (throws cookie and carbuncle runs after it like an energetic puppy) lol oh yes and if I read ur profile correctly I believe it is ur birthday soon so HAPPY BIRTHDAY for then and consider this chappie as an early birthday present.:) Hope you liked it!

**Casey: **hahaha, more cliffies! (villainous evil laugh) (coughs) yes, I know RxK is scary, it's not right - what about poor little Sora! (teary eyes) oops, sorry. XD Well, my dance is kind of hard to describe… kinda just a silent jig around my room (silent becos my family already thinks I am insane enough as it is) with a whole lot o jumping. XD 'yay for double chocolate cookies'! (giggles) (hands double chocolate cookie) thanks for reviewing!

**no name:** haha, love the name…lol. Thanks for the review! Enjoy your cookie! (gives cookie)

**MegaLaManiacOfTheNorth: **wow that's a long name. XD yea, 'update now'_ is_ two words…sadly. Oh well, it sounded cool anyways. o.O glad u liked this! (gives away very last cookie) (I only just had enough)


	5. Dreams Come True

**_Author's Note:_ **Wow! Thanks for all the reviews guys! I'm so happy! XD Sorry for the ultra slow update, school's been hell, and I haven't had time! GAH! And I'm also working on … two … one-shots which will be up…sometime… I'm halfway through both of them. How the hell did that happen? --' Ah well. On with the fic!

**_Disclaimer:_ **Don't own anything cept my OCs, Madoka and Chiyo! So don't sue me! Seriously, who would sue someone for writing a fanfiction anyway?

* * *

**Chapter 5; "Dreams Come True"**

_Sora swallowed, yanked his arm from her grasp and trudged away on the sand, shivering slightly._

"_Sora, pl-please!" Kairi choked through her tears. He ignored her completely._

"_Sora, wait! I don't love Riku, I love you!"__  
_

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Sora stopped dead, halfway down the passage of the secret place.

A bird outside chirped loudly; the only sound to be heard in the silent cave. Sora just stood there, shocked and confused, and wondering if he should get his hearing checked. Had Kairi just said…? Kairi… she couldn't be _serious_. She had been with Riku and now she was suddenly _confessing_ to _him_? What was going on? He had seen Riku embrace her … and the happy smile upon her face … It didn't make sense ...

He blinked.

Sora turned slowly around to face her, bewildered. Kairi knelt on the floor, eyes wide and staring at the dirt floor of the secret place.

'_Oh crap…What did I say that for?' _Kairi cursed herself as a blush crept up her cheeks, _'Dammit … Why am I BLUSHING?'_

She lowered her head to look at her clasped hands, so to hide her crimson face from him. She felt trapped, as though he had cornered her and now she was spilling all her heart out to him, her deepest feelings …

Because she had meant it. She did love him.

She loved him for his never-ending cheerful attitude, which always succeeded in making her laugh when she was sad. He had comforted her when she was most in need of it, and taken her in as a friend when she had no one else. She loved him because he had died for her, sacrificed his heart to bring her back, and she in turn had returned him to life. She had loved him since long before the incident, back when they were still little kids, playing on a tropical island and dreaming of other worlds. He was her best friend, and they had become closer and closer over the years, until she found herself depressed, lonely and hurting without him. For the last year had been agony, not knowing if she would ever see him again, waiting hopefully on the shore each day for his return …

Kairi swallowed her thoughts and frantically tried to think of an explanation for her sudden outburst, but her mind was not up for thinking of excuses, and squealed when Sora began to slowly walk towards her.

He stopped suddenly in front of her, so she was staring at his shoes, and he held out his hand for her to take. She hesitated for a moment, afraid and humiliated, but then softly laid her hand in his and he hoisted her up off the floor. As her feet steadied themselves on the ground her head lifted slightly, but she closed her eyes before they could meet his. He kept a firm grip on her slender wrist when he spoke.

"Kairi …" he hesitated, "you…? You were…?" he stopped again, unsure of what to say, and Kairi opened her eyes.

It shocked her to see how close he was. When he had pulled her up he had not moved away, and now only his arm holding hers separated them. She swallowed and tried to glance up at Sora inconspicuously, but found that her eyes caught on his, which were gleaming and staring at her intensely.

Words failed her.

Kairi flushed, staring into his endless azure eyes, her heart thumping against her ribcage. His grip on her wrist tightened, and her eyes widened as his other hand found her waist.

Was he moving even closer? Ever so slowly…

She gulped. No, he was much too close. She could now feel his soft breath on her cheek, and she lifted her head to him as he drew closer.

"Kairi …" he whispered, and she felt her body tingle hearing his voice so close … her lips parted slightly… his hand slid around to her back … her eyelids flickered shut … they were centimetres apart …_**  
**_

"HEY!"

Kairi's eyes snapped open.

"Are you guys in here?" asked the hurried footsteps echoing down the tunnel.

Kairi gasped fearfully. She stumbled backwards away from Sora, eyes fixed on the doorway, and sure enough, a second later Selphie had leapt into the cavern.

"Finally! Do you know how long I've been looking for you too?" she scolded with hands on her hips, apparently unaware of the scene she'd just walked onto. Neither Sora nor Kairi moved.

"Guys! Are you even listening to me? What've you been _doing_ in here anyway?"

Kairi, lost for words, glanced quickly at Sora, who seemed unshaken, and answered smoothly,

"Jeez, Selph, we were just talking. What'd you want?"

Selphie's irritated look was quickly replaced by a smug one. "Oooh, _talking_? Uh huh. Sure. I really believe that."

'_Shut it, Selphie…'_ thought Kairi angrily, _'It's none of your business…'_

Selphie whistled annoyingly, and looked from one to the other in interest.

"Had to have a nice, private reunion, didn't ya?" She said, grinning.

Kairi swallowed forcefully, and tried to stop the blush that was quickly returning to her face.

"Yeah whatever, Selph." Sora chuckled, then made to leave, but was stopped by a hand flung out by Selphie.

"Oh no! I completely forgot! You distracted me, guys … The reason I came was to introduce you, Sora!" she grinned.

"Huh?" Sora asked, confused, "Introduce me to who?"

"Wait here a minute, I'll go find her … hmph …she was right behind me …"

Selphie disappeared out the tunnel.

Sora turned to Kairi, "….What was that all about?"

"Ahmmm…" Kairi spoke hesitantly, and blushed yet again, unable to keep her mind on the subject, "Well…"

"…"

Kairi shook her head. "We'll explain when she gets here, 'kay?"

"Okay…"

For a moment they stood in silence, which got more and more awkward for Kairi as the seconds ticked by. She still could not believe what had almost happened a moment ago. They'd been so close … If only Selphie had waited just a minute more …

She smiled softly.

Sora's mind meanwhile, was on this person who he was to meet. He had known everyone on the islands… so… had she come here from another world? In the last year? How? Why had she come? _How_ had she gotten here?

Had the heartless destroyed her world as well?

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**__**  
**_

Selphie ran back into the room, grinning.

"Alrighty! Come on out!" she called happily.

And a small girl stepped timidly into the cave.

She had short, dirty blonde hair that partly hid her large hazel eyes, which glanced around the walls and quickly rested on Sora. She seemed terrified that she was meeting someone new, and reminded Sora of a shy puppy; dependent on others and afraid to be alone.

"Sora, meet Chiyo Sasaki," announced Selphie pompously, gesturing to the girl, "Chiyo? This is Sora, our almighty Keyblade Master!"

Sora raised an eyebrow; he hated people referring to him as that.

Chiyo inclined her head forward slightly, but did not speak.

"… Hi…" said Sora awkwardly.

Selphie giggled. "Well say something!" she ordered playfully, and Chiyo blushed and spoke in a soft, high voice which suited her perfectly.

"Nice to meet you…"

Selphie sighed. "Sorry Sora, she's usually a bit more talkative…" she shook her head at Chiyo, who smiled apologetically.

Sora grinned and shook his head. "Umm …" he cleared his throat and turned to the other two, "how… how did she get here? I mean…"

"We don't know," answered Selphie simply.

"She just washed up on the shore one day … the same way I did, remember?" asked Kairi reminiscently, and Sora caught her eye.

Of course he remembered. He had been the one who'd discovered her, after all. Her lifeless body lying on the beach…

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**__**  
**_

_"Who … are you ... ? Where did you … come from?"  
_

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X  
**_

"I was just walking along the beach one day and there she was … unconscious … and Madoka was further up the shore…" said Kairi, looking at Chiyo thoughtfully.

"Madoka?" asked Sora worriedly.

"Oh! Sorry! She came with Chiyo as well."

"Great…" said Sora wearily.

_"So they're both from another world … wonder what -"_

Chiyo giggled and spoke softly again, "We don't really remember much about our old world…" And when Sora glanced at her in surprise, he thought for a moment she looked pitifully solemn, but it was gone in an instant, and she was cheerful once more.

Sora went on, "Right … so… so when am I meeting… Madoka, then?" he sighed.

"Tonight, probably!" said Selphie enthusiastically, a big grin upon her face, "speaking of which, Kairi! Chiyo! We need to get ready for the party! Come on!"

Kairi and Sora blinked.

"_PARTY_?"

* * *

  
**_A/N:_** There you go! Yes, Sora's mum went crazy and planned a random party thing! lol. Hope it was okay :) Tell me what u guys think of Chiyo! She's so cool! >tear> I'm so proud of her! SQUEE! Um, yea and I'M SO SORRY for not updating sooner, and unfortunately I believe it may happen again, since I haven't even got the next chapter drafted yet… T-T Oh well, do not fear! I shall have it up asap! 

So review review review! Even if you just say 'Update soon' I would love it! So go ahead! Don't be shy! If you don't then I will cry! Yay! I made a poem! XD Obey it and review :)

Sadly, I can't reply to reviews on here anymore because of that stupid new rule, but I might put the replies up on a site somewhere, like AK has, so check my profile for details on that later! Also on my profile is a link to the petition to get the rule repealed! SIGN IT! Anyways I'm so sorry guys! I absolutely LOVE your reviews and everyone gets chocolate anyway! >throws enormous amounts of chocolate and cookies and other kinds of food at reviewers> I LUV YOU ALL!

And one last thing… to an extra-special person who added this story to their C2…. >grins at Duelwielder> you are AWESOME! >glomp> THANKYOU SO MUCH! I am going to go read your stories when I have time! >hugs Duelwielder> XD

Anyways ciao everybody! Please review! You get ... something ... if you review ... i dunno. JUST REVIEW ALREADY!


	6. Jealous Celebrations

**_Author's Note:_** >ENORMOUS GLOMP> Thanks to everyone who reviewed! You make me so happy! I'm so so so so so so sorry about the slow update and I know you're ALL going to kill me, all I can say is DAMN THAT SCHOOLWORK! And then the new trailer came out and GOD every KH fan dammit go to my profile and download the most awesome KH2 trailer yet! It gives my brain headaches because it's so awesome! AAAAAAAHHHHH! Anyways, um this chapter is kinda short as well, and I'm not happy with it… it kind of different than the previous chapters... >cowers> Plz forgive me!

**_Disclaimer:_** Haha, if I owned Square, Sora would be ALL MINE! Mwahahaha… >cough> unfortunately, I don't. >cries>

**_Thanks to everyone:_** nogigglingmajor; AngelKairi; Zarya; Casey; RainingHeart; misshotness; anime fanatic; Anime-17; thesrazrbladekisses; cHErrY-dREaMeR; sxk42va; Iridaceae; story-reviewer-28; khfanatic; Artemis1860; and darklight!

**_Chapter 6: "Jealous Celebrations"_**

Kairi sighed and flung yet another shirt over her shoulder, onto the bed. She placed her hands on her hips and turned angrily to face the already towering pile of clothes upon her mattress.

The party was in three hours precisely. It was to be just a casual welcome home sort of party, nothing at all formal, and Kairi usually would have felt it easy to find a suitable outfit. After all, she had spent the last year hardly noticing what she put on in the mornings, and certainly not caring what other people thought. But suddenly all her clothes seemed too skimpy, too loose, or just too childish to wear tonight.

'_How the hell did I get so many clothes?'_

Kairi exhaled deeply and let herself fall backwards onto the soft garments that covered her bed. She felt angry at herself. She wasn't like this. Selphie was the kind of girl who got worked up over clothing, not her. What was wrong with her?

Kairi's mind wandered, and in a moment she was reflecting on that morning again. She smiled softly, a slight blush spreading over her cheeks. Closing her eyes, she could still remember the pounding of her heart while he held her; her racing pulse as he moved closer and closer…

Kairi frowned through her daydream. "Dammit Selph…" she murmured quietly, "Why couldn't you have waited? Chiyo wasn't _that _important… he could have met her tonight…like Madoka…"

That's right. Sora would meet Madoka in just a few hours. Kairi smiled at that thought. Oh dear - Sora was definitely in for a shock. Kairi giggled, but on the inside, she was worried. Worried about the harm Madoka could cause with only a few careless words or gestures. Thinking of the worst, Kairi dreaded the party, and felt a surge of frustration at Madoka for being what she was.

Kairi sighed, and blocked both Selphie and Madoka from her thoughts, allowing her mind to wander blissfully on those precious seconds before Selphie trespassed on their secret cave.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Kairi's eyes flickered open, and she sighed happily. She could easily remember every detail of her dream, and doing so, blushed again.

'_Sora…'_

Shifting uncomfortably, Kairi realised she'd been sleeping on a heap of clothing.

'_What the …?'_

Kairi clamped a hand over her mouth as she remembered. Clothes for the party!

'_Dammit!'_

How could she have just fallen asleep like that? Cursing her sleeping habits, Kairi flung herself out of bed, bringing a few items of clothing with her, and sprinted over to her dresser, grabbing her alarm clock.

_**6:37 PM**_

The red-head heaved a sigh of relief. So she still had a bit of time. But she'd have to hurry, especially with the next task ahead of her: actually deciding on an outfit, instead of throwing them around the room.

'_No more fooling around,' _she told herself irritably, turning to the crumpled pile on her bed.

With another glance at the clock, she hurriedly picked out a pair of casual jeans. Nothing she was content with, but it would have to do.

'_At least it's not a skanky mini-skirt …' _she thought to herself consolingly. She paused for a moment, trying to imagine the look on Sora's face in he'd seen her in one of _those… _

Grinning and shaking her head, she grabbed a few, less crumpled, different coloured shirts and held them one after the other up to herself in thought. Her eyebrow twitched.

"_Why do I only ever look good in one colour?"_ she thought angrily, throwing her hands up in frustration.

"White it is then!" she called out in triumph, and spun around in front of the mirror.

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

_**Later…**_

Kairi sipped routinely from her glass, and looked sleepily around at the crowd. Practically the whole of the island had turned up at the mention of a party, even those who hardly knew what it was for. They loved an excuse for celebrating. With so many people around, she and Selphie had retreated to a small group of trees further up the shoreline than the main party, which was held on the beach of the mainland.

As Selphie began yet another predictable sentence, Kairi again glanced around and tried to block out Selphie's droning voice. She'd heard the story a million times before, and Selphie never got tired of telling it in her annoyingly hyper tone.

"So yeah and then Kai ran up and got me and I was like 'Oh mah gawd!' 'cos I mean it's been years since that last happened!" At this point she paused to wink happily at Kairi. "And then later we woke them up and they couldn't remember like, anything about where they came from, or..."

Sora was looking very interested, and kept nodding her on. Kairi rolled her eyes.

'_Typical Keyblade Master…'_

"… well Chiyo had a bit of a weird memory," Selphie continued, "but it doesn't tell us anything about where they're _from _... just an island of some kind… Sora what do you think? 'Cos I mean you've been like everywhere! I mean, Kairi told us about your…" Selphie trailed off, looking expectant.

Sora blinked, looking as though he'd caught about three words in the whole speech.

"Uhhh…"

Kairi turned to him disinterestedly. Could he really know something about were the two newcomers came from? There was a lot he'd learned in the past year, and a lot of that knowledge had changed him as well. Selphie's eyes lit up in anticipation.

"Ooooooh, how? How? Tell meeeeeee! How'd they get here? Soraaaaaaaa!"

But Sora did not answer. His eyes were gazing, spellbound, past Selphie into the crowd behind her.

"Wha…" Selphie turned.

"Oh no…"

Sora stared, open-mouthed, as a girl strode into their midst.

Kairi turned as well, and felt like smacking Sora for the look on his face. Well, at least she'd known it would happen.

The girl was very thin, and wore an extremely low cut sleeveless shirt over her slim figure. A short, tight mini skirt partly hid her slender legs, which donned a pair of high-heeled leather thigh boots. To top it off, her long black hair hung quite seductively over her deep green eyes, which now glanced around at the company before her.

Hey Selph, Kai, haven't seen ya in a while! You know you ought to come visit us more often! Just because we live over the other side doesn't mean you can neglect us!" She nodded at them, then grinned around at Sora.

"Sora, I presume?" she asked, smirking.

Sora blinked.

"Yes," Kairi answered for him, frowning.

"_Jeez Sora, get over her…" _she thought jealously.

Selphie laughed. "Sora, this is Madoka Maboroshi!" she smiled cheerfully, introducing her the same way she had with Chiyo.

"Nice to meet 'cha, Sora!"

"… hi…" Sora said weakly.

"So you're the almighty Keyblade Master, eh? Skilled at swordplay, a quick mind, eh? Kairi's told us all about you!" she smirked, "And by the way," she nudged Kairi, and her voice dropped to a loud whisper, "He's just as cute as you said he was!"

Kairi went brick red and stared at the floor, finally understanding the feeling of wanting to disappear into the floor. Everyone had heard that. Why did Madoka have to be so damn outright?

Madoka winked at Sora, who just blinked cluelessly again, completely lost. He wasn't used to having so many girls around, or at least, girls who acted like this. In the back of his mind he suddenly appreciated Kairi's personality.

Madoka suddenly stopped, and looked up, her eyes caught on something in the crowd. She looked intrigued.

"Oooh, who's that?"

Kairi turned just in time to see a lock of silvery hair disappear into the crowd. She rolled her eyes.

"Come on Selph, you can introduce me!" giggled Madoka, "Better leave these two alone, eh?" she winked at Sora again, and skipped off with Selphie.

"Bye Sora!"

_**X**xxx**X**xxx**X**_

Sora stared after them.

"She's…"

Kairi's eyes widened, and she turned fearlessly to face him.

"…weird."

Kairi snorted, and put her hands on her hips, looking scornfully at him.

"What's with you?"

"Huh?"

Kairi looked at him hurtfully. "I'm going to get another drink," she waved her empty glass at him.

"Bye."

* * *

**_A/N: _**Once again, so sorry for the shortness, and strangeness...just the beginning of the party and introducing Madoka… who now that I think about it, is kind of like Yuffie. Haha. How useful. 

The next chappie will definitely be up way faster than this one! And oh look! They put up a place where I can reply to your reviews! YAY! I guess that petition paid off after all… >grins> Please please please review! All ya need to do is click the little button down there that says "Go", type a nice message, and press "Submit review"! It's very easy! Yay for easy-ness!

v Review now please! v

Racc48


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